Celestial Light
by lolafalana
Summary: Alice and Jaspers Story. My whole body shook with the vision. There was something important about this. I stared at my hands as if they contained an oracle, as if it would lead the way. This was a horrible day to be blessed with the gift of foresight.
1. The Escape

**Chapter 1: The Escape

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**

I lay there blinking in the darkness that was my life. I could see a square of light coming through the single window that was on the door. It was always there, it never moved. The only light that I ever saw in my life was from that tiny square and it was synthetic at best. Today was just the same as yesterday. I saw the beautiful face of a blonde boy reaching out to me and loving me. It was one of the only things that kept me going.

The door opened and the artificial light flooded into the room with a large silhouette in the middle. I looked up to see the tall psychiatrist walking into the room. He had dark hair and very pale skin. He always looked like he needed a good night's rest and his eyes sometimes glowed an ominous red. This would make a normal person uneasy but I had seen a boy with the same color eyes and I loved him.

He shut the door behind him and sat in a chair next to my bed. He did this often and would ask me questions about the things that I saw in my mind. Today a new vision had erupted through me and it was terrifying. The little bit of light still emitting into the room from the small window was lighting the man's face to show his perfect features.

"What did you see today?" the man asked me, alight with curiosity.

"My doom," I barely croaked a whisper.

His eye brows shut up and he froze like he was waiting for it to hit at any moment. I reached out and placed my hand on his forearm to console his worried expression. It was like touching an ice sculpture. He flinched from my warm touch but then brought his cold hand over mine, in comfort, I suppose.

"Tell me about it my child," he said eagerly.

"I was lost in the woods. I don't know how I got there. A beautiful creature of a man came out of nowhere and bit me," tears were swelling up and pouring over my eyes. "The pain…"

"It's okay dear one, I will protect you," he said slowly, but his anxiety fell through his pretense.

He was wrong though. I had failed to tell him that I did know some of the steps that would lead to me ending up in the woods and that I also knew his plans for me. He was going to help me escape. He could see my expressions, though I didn't know how he could in this dark room.

"Have you seen anything else?" he asked softly.

"The nurse will be here in a few minutes," I warned him.

He stood and left the room swiftly, so quickly that I didn't see him do it. The nurses on staff were unaware of how often he actually visited me in my room.

I curled up on the bed, bringing my knees to my chest, crying. I knew what the nurse had in store for me. It would be another terrible night of torture. The nurse on duty this evening reveled in treating her patients with the lowest level of human respect – none.

The door opened again and the short round woman strode into the room, brandishing a needle. A cry escaped my lips as she came closer to me. I backed up against the wall like I was trying to become a Charlemagne. Visions began flashing through my mind as quickly as she was thinking about her many pleasures she would be torturing me with.

Suddenly a new vision flew through my mind. The vicious look and inhuman glare of a pale beauty was rushing into a room where my limp body was being kicked and punched. He strode over and brought his hand to her neck. She screamed out in terror and it only brought a new fanatical glow of pleasure across his face as he brought his lips to her neck. It looked like he was kissing her. When he removed his face from her, he let go and she fell to the ground, lifeless. He turned and his lips were red with blood.

A scream escaped my lips and the nurse smiled in pleasure because she thought it was because of her advance. She brought the needle to my neck and pressed it against my skin and it broke through. Pain seared through me until the woman in front of me became blurry. I covered my face, which was wet with tears.

"No! Please…" I cried out, begging.

"Ha-ha silly child. You are a worthless piece of a human being. I will beat this affliction from you if I have to," she said in a falsely sweet fashion.

My words became slurred. "You can't…stop…him."

"What do you mean child?" her face showed a menacing curiosity at my words.

Everything went dark.

When I awoke I was being held by something very cold. My eyes were still closed and wet with tears. A sob escaped my lips and a light hand gently rubbed up against my face, pulling my hair away from my eyes.

"Ms. Brandon, I've got you," the man told me but his worry was present in his tone.

My life seemed to be full of nothing but pain, fear, and this gentlest of a man. Suddenly, like a nightmare coming back to me, my vision of his murderous ways flashed through my mind. A high pitch scream came through my lips and his hand was quickly over my mouth.

"Shh," he murmured. "It's okay, I won't hurt you."

My eyes opened and it was bright. I saw the shadow of the beautiful psychiatrist's face as light surrounded him like a halo. He was moving quickly through a hallway. I saw the fluorescent lights above me and was limp in his arms. He removed his hand from my lips once he thought I would be silent.

I was silent because I knew his words to be true, yet the vision I had earlier had scared me to near death. Something like a dream trying to be remembered burst through my mind as an earlier vision flitted across my hectic mind. The monster that is going to kill me was just like this gorgeous man.

I knew where the psychiatrist was taking me - to his office. His next course of action was not solid at this present moment. His face was tense, alarmed. I heard a horrified gasp from a little girl as she saw me in his arms. I could only imagine what I looked like to her. Bleeding, bruised, and crying. A whispered discussion ensued between the parents of the little girl as we rushed by them.

After the weight of several seconds we finally reached his office. He sat me down on a chair and pulled another out to put it opposite of me. He sat down and moved so close to me that our noses almost touched. I knew he wouldn't harm me but I still shied from the closeness.

"Are you okay?" he asked in a strained voice.

He began tracing lines with his finger tips at the newly forming bruises that were in the shape of large fat fingers on my arms. His cold touch sent a shiver down my spine. I could see in his eyes the love he felt for me.

"I don't know," I answered truthfully.

His face was screwed up in pain as he wiped the ever flowing tears from my face.

"I'm taking you away from this place. I will never let another soul harm you," he said with an understated fervor.

My previous vision engulfed me as I remembered being lost in the forest. This was the first step to me landing in there, though I wasn't quite sure how I arrived there from this point.

"The end," I said, horrified.

"This won't be the end, it will be the beginning," he told me.

Alarms sounded and we both looked up to see red lights flashing in the hallway through the window in the door.

"We have to go," he exclaimed.

He snatched me up and opened the door to run for it. Two large guards came running at us. I clutched myself to the man as the two men advanced. I closed my eyes tightly while many noises erupted around us.

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_Author's Notes: Most of the characters that you will encounter in this story are Stephenie Meyer's creations. I hope you enjoyed reading this first chapter and will continue to read once I post more._


	2. First Sight

**Chapter 2: First Sight

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**

When I opened my eyes we were no longer in the building. The sound of the alarm was becoming fainter as he put distance between us and the hospital. My head was pressed against his chest and he was cold and hard. I listened to his even breathing as he ran but could hear no heart beat. _How odd_, I thought. I inclined my head to look at him and the sun blinded my eyes. It was like I had never seen the light before; I had been in that dark room with the tiny window for so many years.

I squinted up through my eye lashes and what I saw made me jump while a small gasp escaped my lips. He was…sparkling! Dozens of striking rainbows reflected off of his skin like millions of crystal pieces were imbedded there. He was stunningly beautiful. He looked down at me and smiled widely at my expression. _What is he?_ I shook my head back and forth hoping to dispel what I was seeing, yet every time my eyes met his skin I was blinded by the reflections. _Who was this man?_ _Am I that drugged?_ I asked myself.

It became dark and I finally peeled my gaze off of his face because he quit emitting the luminous colors. I looked around and I thought we were in a forest, I couldn't quite tell because we were moving so fast everything was a streaky blur. My hair was flowing behind me while the wind whipped at my face. It was the most refreshing thing I had ever felt.

A fizzling of grayish colors started forming in my minds eye. The images swirled and changed until it became clearer. We were headed to a cabin in the mountains where he planned to stow me away.

He only ran, holding me, for another minute before we were in a small clearing with the cabin. He put me down on my feet and turned to walk towards the cabin. There was a sharp pain that seared up my leg as I put weight on it and I wobbled while my knees shook. I gasped in pain and fell to the ground. He whipped around and was by my side in a blindingly fast motion.

"Oh no! Are you okay?" the gentle man asked me.

I stared up at him dizzily. "No, I think my leg is broke," I moaned in pain.

A crease formed between his eyes at my words, like it pained him to see me here, lying on the cold ground, broken. I didn't understand his sympathy.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered in agony. "I should have taken you from that place a long time ago."

I was no longer paying attention to the spectacular creature that was in front of me because the pain reached such a pitch I was on the verge of passing out. The drugs the nurse gave me must be wearing off because I was beginning to feel every bruise, every tear and rip of my skin and every broken bone. I grasped at my side, feeling like a piece of fruit gone rotten I was so soft from the beating.

My teeth clenched in an effort to keep myself conscious. All the trees around me swirled and became blurry. I put my head between my knees trying to focus myself. My stomach was tightening as I was about to become violently sick.

Cool hands were on my face in an instant, caressing and soothing. I jerked my head up quickly and turned to the side because it was too late - I was going to be sick - I vomited on the ground. I turned my head away from what I had just done, in fear that it would make me sick again. I could feel my skin becoming cool and clammy as sweat broke out over my forehead.

He lifted me in an instant, being as gentle as possible not to jar me and brought me into the cabin. He sat me on the couch and gave me a worried expression.

"I need to get you to a hospital," he sighed.

Another swirling image was forming in my head. I looked up at him and tried my best to muster a smile. "But you're not going to, are you?" I asked knowingly.

"Of course you would know," he teased, abruptly lightening the mood.

Though I knew this man from the many times he came to visit me, I realized I never knew his name – or I did and have been drugged and beaten so many times my memory was fuzzy. He continued to measure my expression as I looked up at him.

"I'm sorry, what's your name again?" I asked, blushing. "Daniel Bradford," I answered for him just as he was about to speak.

He raised an eyebrow at me and then grinned widely. I could see that he loved me, cared for me, yet I didn't understand why he did.

"Let me get some supplies to fix your leg," he contemplated for a minute, "Is anything else broken or hurting?"

"I have a few ribs that are broken," I replied while pain ripped through my body as I took each breath, emphasizing the broken bones.

He inhaled deeply and sighed loudly. "Okay," he pursed his lips. "Will you be okay while I'm gone?" he asked.

I nodded and he was out the door so quickly it blew a light wind across my face. Pain was surging through me so I laid down to ease some of the stress on my leg and ribs. I let my favorite vision engulf me to try to mask my pain. The beautiful blonde boy – tall and leonine - opening his arms to me so he could embrace me. The happiness that I felt ripple through me was intense. The love I had for him was so powerful that I would surely die and wither away into nothing if he were no longer apart of my future.

I must have fallen asleep because something cold and smooth was touching my skin bringing me from a dream. I opened my eyes to watch Daniel as he worked on my leg. His gaze met mine and he smiled weakly.

"You're awake," he began but I cut him off.

"You have to set my leg," I finished for him.

"Yes," he replied gravely. "When you were sleeping I gave you a local anesthetic. It shouldn't be painful," he looked like he was unsure if he was telling the truth or not.

"It will be," I informed him. "It's okay, I trust you to be as gentle as you possibly can."

He frowned as he prepared to set my leg and his face showed a grief that I had never seen before. Though I haven't seen many faces in a long time, he was still gorgeous even in grief.

"One…two…" he counted down.

"Three," I finished as he yanked my bone back into place.

The sensation that ran up my bone and into my hip was something I had never felt before. I held my breath and refused to make any noise though my breath was quick and my heart was speeding up rapidly. I caught a look in his eyes like he could hear my drumming heart. My hands were clenched into fists as the pain continued to surge up my leg. I saw the look on his face turn from grief to pure agony. I turned my face away from him, meeting my own gaze in the reflection of the glass.

She wasn't someone I recognized. Her hair was practically shaven off from being in the mental hospital. Her eyes were a brilliant shade of blue and her nose was set evenly between her eyes. It had been so long since I had seen my own reflection and I was convinced for a whole second that it wasn't me.

The pain had lessened and I returned my eyes to his as I unclenched my hands. He noticed the signs of pain subsiding and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright?" he asked gently.

"Yes – you need to pack my ribs…I know…." I smiled through the pain.

His lips twitched up into a smile. "You are fascinating," he chuckled lightly.

After several more painful moments of being fixed, bandaged and cleaned up I was finally able to stand, even if it was lopsided.

"Would you like a moment to wash up?" he asked.

"Yes, that would ne nice," I smiled at him.

The cabin had no electricity so Daniel boiled some water so I could have a bath. I soaked in the tub for almost an hour. The water was beginning to turn cold. He helped me out of the tub, wrapping a towel around me. Being naked in front of a man who you didn't know well would normally make someone blush but I hadn't had privacy for years and he was a complete gentleman.

"We're staying here tonight," I informed him.

He nodded.

"But we can't stay here because people will be looking for me," I continued.

He nodded again.

"Where will we go?" I asked. A curious sensation flitted through me because the future was swirly and cloudy. The only thing that was clear as glass was the glorious blonde boy.

"I don't know, but I'll keep you safe," he vowed.

The night was cool and I slept comfortably in the cabin's bedroom. Daniel didn't sleep, he stood guard over me. I was worried he would get too tired but when I begged him to go to sleep he refused. That night was the best sleep I had ever had.

When I awoke the next morning Daniel was preparing breakfast for me. I was ravenous and began devouring the eggs and bread like I had never eaten before. Daniel didn't eat any food while I shoveled it into my mouth. As I was shoving the last bit of egg in my mouth I spit it across the room as a scream flew out of my mouth - a previously vicious premonition came into view.

A pale man was rushing towards me, ready to pounce…the vision went blurry and shifted slightly. I saw Daniel broken into pieces…being burned. The terror began rising in me like hot steam. My stomach twisted in horror while my eyes filled with tears. Daniel was there in an instant, wiping the tears from my face.

"What is it? What do you see?" he looked anxious.

"Death," I sobbed.

He pulled me close to his chest and murmured lightly, "I won't let anyone hurt you."

I nodded, my head still securely to his chest. It was him I was worried about more than myself. Once I had calmed down he began getting his belongings together, putting clothes and food in a bag.

"You still haven't decided." I told him.

He ignored me and threw the bag over his back and then pulling me up into his arms.

"Where are we going?" I pondered, trying to get him to make a decision so I could see. "North maybe?" I looked to the future again. "Toward's Canada?"

He frowned at me. "Do you always see the future?" he asked, instantly curious.

"It changes depending on decisions. They change or shift if someone changes their mind. I can't tell where we are going until you make up your mind," I explained. "Canada it is!" I exclaimed and he smiled down at me.

He walked out of the cabin and there was a man standing in the forest, stock still, tall…and very familiar. I felt Daniel freeze as soon as he sighted the new comer. The pale man from my vision stepped out of the forest. I gasped in horror as his gaze turned to me, smiling menacingly.

"My doom," I whispered to Daniel.

He didn't respond or move.

"Are you going to share?" the pale man asked.

"She's mine," Daniel growled protectively.

"You won't share?" the man asked while walking ever closer to where we were.

Daniel took a few hasty steps backwards.

"She's not for the taking!" Daniel bellowed while a feral snarl ripped up his throat.

"Oh, I think she is," the pale man chuckled low.

Simultaneously the sallow man crouched to attack and I was on the ground, Daniel leaning over me protectively. There was a blindling fast motion from both of them as they collided, the noise sounding like a rumbling of thunder. I heard growls and snaps as they fought. I tried to drag myself away in a hopeless attempt. _Was this going to be the end of my life? Would I never see the light of day again? Would my life only contain the darkness I had come accustome too?_

I saw something fly across the forest and hit a tree. My eyes widened in terror as I realized what it was. An arm was lying on the ground only feet away from me. I heard another snap and a leg went flying the other direction. I cried out in horror as my stomach turned over in fear.

Daniel came running over to me, his limbs in tact. I reached up to him in relief, grateful he was in one piece. He didn't hesitate as he pulled me up into his arms and turned to look at the broken man on the ground.

"We have to get out of here, now!" he said in a dark voice and speed off through the forest.

"There was no blood," I whispered.

"He's not human," Daniel informed me.

"And neither are you," I replied, knowing I was right – I just didn't know what he was.

"No," he replied in a low voice.

My premonition from earlier had not changed, the pale creature was still going to come after me.

"He's hunting," I said quietly as the wind whipped through my hair.

"Yes," he said simply. "We have to get as far from him as possible."

The tree's continued to flash by us as we whizzed violently through the forest. I stared up at his grave face.

"It won't help," I informed him.

He didn't respond but the wind being produced by us running was spinning around me faster and faster as he increased his already lethal speed.

"I'm going to protect you, Alice," he promised.

_Alice?_ I asked myself. It had been many years since I had heard my name. I continued to stare at his face as his hair was being whipped around his face. I put my hand to his cheek and he looked down at me.

"You'll keep me safe," I told him, though it was still uncertain but I wanted to ease his mind.

More things shifted in the future, but the blonde boy was still positively, solidly there.

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_Author's Notes: I wanted to thank those who have been following my new story (and my other ones too. I have such loyal fans.)! _

_I have some excellent ideas that I know that my regular audience will love. _

_Your reviews are appreciated and thanks to those who have already reviewed! _


	3. Vampire

**Chapter 3: Vampire

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**

The night came quickly and I fell asleep in his arms as he continued to run. When I woke up I was laying on a very uncomfortable bed…a bed I recognized. _How odd_, I thought. It was dark and I continued to keep my eyes closed as I welcomed sleep to envelope me again. The room was cold and I felt around in the dark for a blanket. When I couldn't find one nearby I opened my eyes. To my horror there was light protruding from the small window on the door, casting a yellow square on the wall in front of me – a synthetic light. I gasped. I couldn't figure out how I had arrived back in my dark room in the asylum. It felt oddly disembodying. Suddenly the door opened and Dr. Daniel Bradford walked through.

It was like I was reliving the previous days. I gasped in terror and jumped off the bed, realizing my leg was intact - my body was bruise free except for the old yellowing bruises of previous beatings.

"What did you see today?" he asked with curiosity, just like he did before.

Why was this happening to me? I pressed my body against the wall, my eyes wide with fear.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he moved closer in an attempt to comfort me.

Realization hit me like a lightning strike - it had all been a very vivid vision, one like I've never had before. My breath became quicker and I was on the verge of a heart attack the rate my blood was flowing in my veins. When I looked at Daniel he had a crease between his eyebrows and an expression of purest sorrow. I had to speak to him quickly before the nurse came in.

"Who are you?" I asked quickly.

"Dr. Daniel Bradford," he looked perturbed.

"No – not _who_ are you..." I whispered, "I mean, _what_ are you?"

In the light coming from the small window I could see his eyebrows raise at my question as a blank silence greeted my words.

"What do you mean?" he finally spoke.

"You need to listen to me because we only have a few more minutes before the nurse is going to come in here." I began. "You sparkle when the sunlight hits you, you move in such a quick movement when you are holding me I can't see anything but a blur and if you take me from this place a very strong man will track us to get to me."

At each of my descriptions his eyebrows rose higher and higher until they were at his hairline.

"Maybe if we do things differently," he whispered to himself.

I began crying. "I don't want to stay in this place anymore, but you have to keep me here - if not…"I trailed off because I knew the coming doom would include Daniel's end.

"The nurse?" he asked.

"Will beat me."

"I'm sorry. I can't let that happen," his face showed the concern that I saw from my vision.

"Then stop her, but don't take me from this place," I begged. "We only have a minute."

"I'm not leaving," he said sternly.

He sat in a chair, immobile like a statue, contemplating everything that I spoke of. Suddenly the door was being opened; the nurse came through brandishing a needle with a wicked smile upon her face. When her eyes caught sight of Daniel the smile slid quickly off her face.

"You need to go," Daniel said tersely to the nurse.

Her eyes narrowed at his words. "It's time for her _treatment_," she hissed.

"She will not be receiving anymore _treatment_," he snapped back at her.

"She is cured?" the nurse asked incredulously.

"There was nothing wrong with her in the first place," Daniel bit back.

"She _sees_…things…the _'future'_," the nurse said in a disbelieving tone.

Daniel stood instantly and at his full height she coward away from him in shock or fear, I wasn't sure. "Leave now," his voice rang with authority.

"Fine, but I'll be back." The nurse slammed the door as she exited.

Daniel turned to me, his face grave. "I have to get you out of this place."

"No!"

"Yes, you can't spend your whole life in this place."

"What I saw…" I began but he cut me off.

"It doesn't matter, I will keep you safe, trust me," but his voice broke and he looked like there was something stuck in his throat.

"I know you will," I sniffled, "it's you I'm worried about."

He was silent at my words while unconsciously moving towards me. His arms were out stretched slightly like he was about to snatch me up and run. His mouth opened and closed several times, trying to make speech come to him.

A vision swirled into my mind as cloudy wisps of smoke surrounded shadowy shapes in a forest clearing. It was undefined yet there was something sinister about it. I tried to look further into the future but it was unclear and foggy. Maybe it was because Daniel had finally decided something but the vision was instantly clear. Daniel and the other man were standing in the forest, talking. I gasped in horror as I realized even if I weren't in this vision that the extremely strong man was still present.

There was a hunter like quality to him as he spoke to Daniel. As I became engrossed into the vision as other decisions must have made my vision clearer. I found out from their conversation that the man's name was James. He was curious as to why he reeked of human but not human blood. His eyes were glowing an ominous red.

Terror ripped through my stomach as the next vision sent my heart flying into wild palpitations. James had become curious of Daniel and followed him to the hospital where he ultimately ends up in my dark room. Unconsciously, I was grabbing Daniels forearm as the visions continued to flash into my mind. I felt a cool hand wipe across my face and when my eyes opened he was only inches away.

"What is it?" he asked, his breath flew into my face and it was a wonderful scent.

"He'll find me here," I whispered barely above a breath.

His eyes went blank like he was making contingency plans in his mind. At his thoughts several things whipped around and changed in my visions, becoming clear and back to foggy as he continued to think. Before my vision became solid I was being brought into his arms.

When I focused my eyes on what was going on we were flying in a blindingly fast motion past the nurse's station. I watched as papers on the desk went swirling around. I watched us fly past a stretch of blank wall before the door flew open. No alarms went off this time. We were out in the forest, sprinting far away from the asylum. The grounds around us looked storm swept.

When we reached the cabin from my previous vision he sat me down on my feet, looking around in alarm. I was able to stand this time; there were no broken bones I had to worry about.

"What's going to happen?" his eyes darted in every direction, looking for the doom I predicted.

I looked to the future again. I felt like a dark shadow possessed me as I dove into James' future. His gleaming red eyes were staring fixedly at Daniels crouched position in front of me. His breathing was harsh and ragged as he prepared to pounce. Our voices were distant and echoing and I was unable to hear our words. Things were happening differently than my very vivid vision I had.

"I can't tell," I said softly, looking up into his dark red eyes. "Are you going to tell me?"

"What I am?"

"Yes. What are you?"

"I am…a vampire." He spoke the words slowly as to make sure I didn't react badly.

I was robbed temporarily of breath before a silent gasp escaped my parted lips. I could feel the sudden realization hit me; the red eyes, his extreme strength, the cold hard skin and his fast motion. I was looking for the terror that didn't hit me. Surely I would be scared of a vampire. _Shouldn't I?_ I looked at him and I was sure that the curiosity was squarely displayed on my face. Words wouldn't form as I saw the similarities of him and our apparent attacker that continued to show up in my visions no matter where Daniel decided to take us. James was like a magnet.

A word finally escaped my lips. "Oh," I gasped as if I had been doused with coldwater while I was overwhelmed with stunned disbelief.

My pulse was reaching a danger point. He kept his distance as he peered down at my reactions to his words. My heart slowed. "That explains a lot." I said while memories flooded my mind of our previous conversations.

A benign smile spread across his face at my expressions which were flickering so frequently I wasn't sure how I felt or what I was seriously thinking. As I continued to stare at him it was like he was radiating an indefinable sense of power. My face must have displayed something funny because a smirk was quivering on his lips.

"You're not scared?" he asked curiously.

"I see the future," I reminded him.

"That is true," he continued to smile as he suppressed laughter.

He must have been feeling relieved at my whole _whatever_ attitude. His face showed a quizzical look, like he was dying to ask me a million questions. I couldn't tell what those questions were because he hadn't decided to ask them yet.

"I've been wanting to take you away for a long time," he was choosing his words carefully. "I have always loved you and I will always love you. I wanted to take you away a long time ago but I was afraid I wouldn't be able to control my thirst," he stared at me, waiting for my face to show the horror he thought it should show. "I've been…practicing." He barely whispered. "I would wither and die away if I were to kill you. I'm still not ready."

"I don't understand," I said in hollow tones.

"I want to transform you into a vampire," his eyes ran over my face looking for the terror that should accompany my eyes. "But I know that I can love you as a human, so I've kept you human. I thought you would be safe in the asylum, but I was wrong. I should have taken you away from there. I wasn't sure what you would think of me once you realized I was the…monster."

"You aren't a monster. You're my savior, my angel," I said in an awed voice.

He didn't speak at my words like there was an ongoing battle raging inside him. His face showed nothing but positive adoration.

It hit me like a ton of bricks, like a wrecking ball; a deluge of startling flashes of insight. An odd chill rose up my spine as I saw the vision that was so ghastly that my breath became rough and my heart began to speed up. I saw the torture that will be inflicted upon Daniel if he continued on his course to turn me into a vampire. It was a scene of total devastation. An invisible hand twisted my intestines. The next vision was crystal clear. My eyes were a bright vivid crimson red and I was lying in the forest, lost.

"You will change me," I said timidly. "When the time is right, it will happen." Tears seeped through my eye lashes.

"I won't kill you?" he wondered, drawing himself up proudly, satisfied with the information.

"No. When it happens…" I didn't want to speak the next words but I had to tell him. "You'll be hunted and killed."

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_Author's notes: Hi Alice fans! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks for all of the fabulous reviews, keep 'em coming! _


	4. Where He Came From

4. Where He Came From

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It didn't seem to bother Daniel at all when I told him that he would be hunted and killed. Maybe he thought this vision to be false. I told him what I saw in my other vision, too, about us leaving the cabin and James finding us there, but we continued to stay here.

I was having trouble sleeping. Looking out the window into the cool misty morning I continued to see his face, the face of a murderer, the man that would kill Daniel. He never showed, in all the morning hours the only sign of life was a deer.

There was a very soft knock on my door as it creaked open. "Why aren't you sleeping?" Daniels malleable voice whirled into the room, his footsteps were echoing in the silence.

"I'm terrified," I breathed, not looking away from the window, sending fog running up the glass.

He gracefully walked into the room and sat beside me, taking my hand in his. His skin was cold as ice and hard, yet comforting.

"I won't let anything happen to you."

He put a light finger under my chin and turned my face to his, pressing his chilled lips to my forehead. I heard him breath deep at my scalp. I pulled away to look at him, not sure if I should be worried about his obvious love of my smell, probably the smell of my blood.

He smiled, "I'm sorry. You smell absolutely wonderful." He measured my expression. "I won't hurt you, I swear. I've lived among humans for nearly seven hundred years."

"Seven hundred years?" I gasped in stunned disbelief.

His smiled grew wider and he chuckled lightly under his breath. "Yes, I became a vampire around the thirteenth century."

I knew my face showed the awe and shock that I was feeling. "How long _will_ you live?" I asked, curious.

"Forever."

My eyes burned suddenly as a feeling of dread crept over me. I looked back out the window so he couldn't see my face, a tear leaked down my cheek but he caught it with his finger.

"I'm not going to die," he promised, his face smoothly inscrutable.

I blinked and one more tear trickled slowly down my face. "I hope I'm wrong this time." My misty breath was fogging up the window.

I could see his reflection as the fog dissipated and he was smiling his mysterious smile. He suddenly brought me into his arms, hugging me gently.

"Don't worry about me. I've been through wars and many centuries of disease."

"Where _were_ you…born, anyways?"

"Italy," he answered with a hint of an accent in his deep vibrant tone.

"How did you become a…a…_vampire_?" I whispered with difficulty.

"That's a_ long_ story and you need to get some rest."

"I'm not tired," I argued and my heart beat a little faster, punctuating my words.

He shook his head slowly while a low chuckled escaped his lips. "Fine, fine. But I'll just give you the short version."

"Okay. I'm listening," I turned my body to face him, not meeting his eyes.

"My human memories are fuzzy, at best, but I do remember some of them. My family was in a blood feud with another family."

"Blood feud?" I asked.

"Yes, just like Romeo and Juliet, many families were continuously fighting." His eyes were reminiscent. "My father hated the Caravelees and had many of their family members killed. One day a fight broke out in the middle of the street and I had been caught in one of the many battles of the war my father was raging. I was brought to the hospital where I met a beautiful nurse," his eyes were blank like he was looking in the past.

"And…" I insisted.

"Her name was Gisele and I loved her from the moment I saw her. It wasn't long after I met her in the hospital that I began to see her randomly popping up wherever I was." He sighed and I could see pain in his red eyes.

"What happened?" I coaxed.

His expression hardened. "I was asleep one night and suddenly she was in my room, like she appeared out of nowhere. She was like the wind, one moment she was standing at the other end of the room and the next she was in my bed," his eyes found mine; like he forgot he was talking to me. "I want to be a gentleman; I don't feel comfortable telling you the rest."

"You can't do that…just stop telling me the story when it was getting to the good part."

I was sitting on the edge of my seat now. It had been so long since I had heard any story at all, let alone one this exciting. My whole life I was stuck in an asylum and my family never visited.

He laughed at my obvious curiosity. "Okay," he conceded. He studied my face like he was trying to choose his words carefully before he spoke. "We made love," he hesitated with a heavy reluctance, "but it was violent and she nearly killed me. She was so strong; I didn't know how to stop her. When it was over, I was close to death. She brought her face to my neck and bit me. I remember thinking that she had lost her mind, but she continued to suck at the bite wound. At first it was almost sexual, but then it was painful – it felt like I was burning alive." His gleaming red eyes found mine and his breathing was harsh and ragged. "She pulled away from me, and then she was gone. After several days of the…pain - burning, it went away and I was strong and different. I craved blood immediately. It was in that instant that Gisele appeared in front of me. She must have moved my body when I was burning, because I had no idea where I was at." He was quiet then and I could see the ongoing battle inside him.

I didn't say anything – I was stunned into silence while I pictured his story in my mind. The beautiful woman, the painful transformation, it all seemed mysterious, scary and wonderful all at the same time. The silenced spiraled for a minute.

"Are you thirsty?" he asked and before I could answer a glass of water came hovering into the room, several feet off the floor. My eyes fell immediately upon the empty space between the glass and the ground below. Daniel reached out and grabbed the glass casually and tried handing it to me. My mouth was hanging open in utter shock so huge I was rooted to the spot. I brought my hands to my eyes and tried to wipe the tiredness from them, thinking that maybe I imagined what I saw. I tried to speak but all I did was stutter and rub my eyes again.

"I'm sorry." He sat the glass of water down next to me. "I didn't mean to scare you. I guess I have some explaining to do," his lips twitched like he wasn't sure if he should smile or not.

My voice came out unnaturally high pitched, "Did that glass just..."

"Hover?" he finished. "Yes. I can move things with my mind. It's not nearly as interesting as Gisele's abilities. I always had trouble finding her when I would see her in a crowd or she would disappear from right in front of me. When she changed me she finally told me that she could become invisible, but for only short periods at a time."

The things that he told me would normally be something that a human would not believe, but I could see the future – so I shouldn't be surprised that there are other people or vampires with abilities, also.

"Why only short periods of time?" I wondered, my mind racing.

"If she were to stay invisible for too long she would…well, it's hard to explain. I guess you could say that she started to fade away, disappear. She lost a finger once, and so she never stayed invisible for long," his voice was pained, like he was remembering something that brought him great agony.

"What happened to her?" I whispered, though I knew this story didn't have a happy ending.

"We were in what you would call Russia. We ran into a large coven of four vampires – something unheard of for our kind. This coven didn't like the fact that we were on their hunting land and captured me. Gisele was with me but instantly became invisible and stripped off her clothes making it even harder for the vampires to track her. They kept me alive just so she would try and save me." His nostrils flared at the memory before he took in a deep breath and his face contorted in sadness and anger. "She did what they wanted – she came to find me. When she did, they trapped her and one vampire pulled her head off, and it instantly became visible."

A little scream exited my lips at his words. "Her…head?" The last word got caught in my throat.

"Yes," he whispered, his loss and despair obvious in his voice. "Well, to kill a vampire you must rip apart the pieces and burn them. We can always put ourselves back together again so the pieces must be burned. When they pulled her head off, the rest of her body stayed invisible. They finished tearing her apart." His face looked like the pain of the story was threatening to overpower him but I wanted to know the rest.

"Did they burn her?" I barely mouthed, scarcely recovering from the shock of hearing about her head being ripped off.

"No, but she couldn't make the rest of her body become visible when she wasn't intact so her body faded away. The coven buried her head in clay and mud." He was silent then.

I decided that I shouldn't press the matter any further. I picked up the glass of water he placed next to me and began chugging it down. I didn't realize how parched I was until I began drinking. When I finished gulping down the water I reached out to place the glass back on the table when a terrifying new vivid image flashed in my mind as a vision swept over me. A female vampire with flaming red hair was holding me against a tree while James and Daniel were fighting. Fear stirred in my chest. This was the first time I had seen this woman and I knew instantly that I had altered the future into something more evil and sinister.


	5. Transformation

5. Transformation

I felt cool hands on my face. My eyes were closed tightly but light was still seeping in through my eye lids.

"Alice?" I heard an angel's voice call.

Opening my eyes, I met the gaze of Daniel, apprehension apparent in his burgundy eyes. Water droplets were covering the window next to me as I turned to look out in the cool misty drizzle of a new day. I sat up rapidly, the movement making me slightly dizzy.

"What happened?" I searched for some sign of how I missed the evening.

"I'm not sure," he looked like he was suffering. "One second you're talking with me, the next thing your eyes were blank and then you fainted on the couch," he looked uneasily at me. "Are you feeling all right?"

Quickly, I shifted around doing a mental inventory. I felt okay. My stomach made a rumbling noise as it ached with hunger. A small relief filled chuckle erupted from Daniel.

"Breakfast?"

"Yes, please." I stood and wobbled slightly. Daniel grabbed my arms to steady me and brought me to a table in the kitchen area.

I watched as he prepared food for me. He had eggs, meat and bread. Where had he gotten all of this food? I watched as he lit a fire under the stove and replaced the metal piece over top of it. He brought a large wrought iron skillet and placed it over the now hot metal.

When he handed me the plate of food, I took it instantly, ravenous for something to eat. As I shoveled food into my mouth I realized what would play out next if this day was anything like my very vivid vision.

"He found us here last time," I began.

"Last time?" he interjected.

"Yes, in my vision you cooked me breakfast and we left the cabin where James was waiting outside."

He cocked his ear to the side, like he was listening for something out there. Was his hearing that good?

"I don't hear anything." He answered my internal question.

Another question was burning inside me, and at this moment in time I couldn't hold it in anymore, it burst out of me.

"How many vampires exist?" I was curious.

"More than I care to count. Many of them are vicious creatures. I have met many in my life time. There was actually one working at the asylum, but she had not been there long. I had no idea what she was doing there."

My eyes had grown wide. "Another one? What did she look like?"

His eyes tried to read my face, trying to see the fear that should be present but all he saw was my curiosity flaring inside me.

"She had long red hair…"

I gasped. Maybe this was the woman from my vision. Was this why James always found us…because of this woman with the red hair?

"What was her name?" I choked out.

"Victoria," he said through his teeth.

I didn't understand his obvious anger at this woman. Had she hurt someone at the asylum? My vision reappeared in my mind as I saw Victoria, or so I thought, hold me by my throat.

"I think I saw her in my vision last night. That is why this vampire, James, always finds us. He has help."

He stood quickly.

"What is it?" I jumped back.

"Someone's outside," he glared over my head, out the closest window.

My heart began pounding at an intense rate, my blood flowing rapidly through my veins as fear entered them. I looked to the future, to see who it was outside.

"They're here," I barely whispered.

"Yes," he answered.

If they were outside, where would we go? Was Daniel going to fight both of them? Would he win, would he lose? The questions were pouring out of my mind, every second my doom coming closer. I stole a peak out the window and saw nothing.

Daniel had begun to take a protective crouch over me. I looked wildly around but my eyes found nothing. What was I missing? I closed my eyes to try and concentrate on the future. The image that my mind was producing was cloudy at best, nothing too apparent. The only thing that was clear as glass in my mind was James being thwarted by Daniel. He was…upside down?

"You can levitate vampires, too?" I asked in a whisper.

"I've never thought of using my powers that way." He was silent as he pondered my question some more. "It's hard to concentrate on anything else when I am trying to levitate something. Did you see something that would help us?"

I concentrated once more on the future, trying with all my might to see a way past the two fierce vampires. Terror tore at my heart as I continued to see the battle rage before my eyes. Again, Victoria had me by my throat, raised partially in the air against something, a tree maybe? James and Daniel were fighting and he was too distracted to use his gift.

"I don't think you're going to save me," I cried out.

He froze, not saying a word. Another vision, flames, I couldn't see them, but I could feel them. I didn't understand this, trying to look towards something else. A blonde boy in a diner with wide beetle black eyes, pale skin, introducing himself to me. Jasper. Love flooded my body, seeped through my pores, made my heart sing.

_Boom!_

I opened my eyes back to reality. I felt Daniels arms swiftly knock me off my feet as we raced out of the kitchen and into another room.

"I can't hold him off for long, what did you see?"

"You have to do it now."

"Do what?" he was anxious.

"Turn me. This is when it happens. If not, we both will die." My voice cracked at the last word.

He brought me gently into his cold hard arms. He kissed me lightly on my lips, and then pulled his face away. His eyes were hungry. Fear over took me, not fear of him, fear of what was going to happen to him. Regardless if he turned me or not, he would die.

He brought his lips to my neck.

"I'm sorry," he breathed in my ear. "I can't do this." He pulled away.

Next thing I knew he was running through a trap door in the floor, me tightly in his arms. We were flying past brown dirt, as the earth covered us in a small tunnel. I hadn't predicted this. The way wasn't lighted, and soon the light from the entrance faded and there was nothing but darkness, the silence vibrating off the earth. I tried to look into the future, but there was nothing, it was all dark.

I felt Daniels shoulder being jerked back as I fell to the ground with a thunderous thud.

"What?" I gasped, but all I heard was growling and roots in the earth cracking around us.

Suddenly there was light coming in through a perfectly round hole above us. Daniel jumped up through the hole as I heard a loud keening noise, another growl and the sound of something cracking, like wood. Large branches came down into the hole with a loud crash, leaves fluttering around.

I backed away as quick as I could, considering I was still on my butt. I could still hear the fighting above me and got to my feet, backing away even more, not able to bring myself to see who was winning. Turning to face the darkness, I placed my hands in front of me to feel my way through the tunnel. My view was obliterated by the darkness that was consuming me. I picked up my pace as I began walking faster, trying to not trip over the roots and rocks that were protruding from the dirt. My breathing became harsh and ragged with each step I took.

As if I were flying I felt my feet leave the ground and the air stir around my face much faster.

"Daniel?" I questioned, bringing my hands to his face to feel his features.

"Yes, it's me," his tone was upset.

Our pace quickened even more as the frigid earth flew past us. The icy air made me shudder and I tried to curl into his grip, realizing he was just as cold as the earth we were under. He could feel my shaking as the chill took me over.

Then, grey pearly morning burst in my eyes. He had broken our way free of the tunnel, and the warmer weather brought heat back to my cold body. In his haste, he didn't lose stride when ripping through the earth. Now there were trees filing past us so quickly there was nothing but a streaky blur obvious.

The future was no longer clear, nothing but cloudy wisps of smoke would enter my mind when I tried to probe my way through the near future. Then, I saw it. A bloody foot print, smears of blood on some sort of stone, a pile of bodies. I was weeping under the stress of this vision, not understanding what it all meant. Neither Daniel nor I were present, only a small dark haired girl and a bronze haired boy. This insight disappeared as soon as it entered my thoughts.

I tried to push this vision from my mind. It wasn't something I could think about now, as my heart was already full of the sickness that accompanied my fear. I looked up to see Daniel's face which was contorted in anger and indecision.

He ran in silence, the wind whipping at his hair, sending it flying up in the air.

"I have to do it, don't I?" He looked down at my expression.

The future came rushing to me - James and Victoria pulling Daniel apart, my body lying limp in the back ground. I could still see the slight raising of my chest. So – I was still alive in this vision.

"_You spoiled her!"_ James yelled in frustration at Daniel.

"_I saved her,"_ Daniel's voice wasn't scared or worried, he was triumphant.

The vision swirled around until I could see it no more. I looked back up to Daniel.

"Well?" he insisted.

"Yes, but…"

He cut me off, "That's all I needed to know."

We didn't go much farther before he slowed to a walking pace. We entered a small clearing where he sat me on my feet. His face continued to show the indecision that I saw earlier. He caught me staring at him and tired to change his expressions to show a smile in my direction. He didn't fool me; I knew there was a war being raged in his mind.

I watched him pace back and forth for several minutes, every once in a while he would stop, turn to me, and then continue his pacing. Each step he took turned his expression into deep lines of despair. Slowly, he was wearing a path in the ground. I waited patiently, my eyes going back and forth, watching each step he took.

Finally, he stopped, turned and moved closer to me. I stepped back once, an automatic response. I saw pain deep in his eyes as he saw my obvious step.

"It will hurt," he informed me.

"I can take it," I countered.

"I might kill you," he continued.

"Better than the life I have now," I stated simply.

He turned away to continue his pacing. I could almost see the wheels turning in his brain.

"Do it," I commanded.

He froze.

"Just do it now, save me from this…existence," I pleaded.

His head slightly lowered before turning towards me.

"I…" he stuttered.

I waited for him to continue. He stepped closer to me. This time I didn't move away, I actually stepped forward. He embraced me, bringing his lips to mine. I could tell in his eagerness that he loved me, that transforming me brought pain to him. My heart fluttered wildly as my hands greedily found his face, bringing him closer to me. If he were to kill me, this would be my last and only true kiss. His lips left mine, but they continued to move down my jaw and to my neck. He kissed the hollow below my ear, sending shivers of pleasure down my spine.

"I want to save you, even if this brings death to me," he whispered softly in my ear.

I became melted butter in his hands, I sank down, but he caught me in his grasp, bending my body with his as his lips found my neck. He kissed lightly before I felt my skin tearing under his teeth. A small cry escaped my lips as I felt the blood rushing up my neck and out of my body. He moaned as he drank me. I didn't fight him. I was feeble in his strong arms. He grasped me harder as I heard some of my ribs break.

I felt a searing pain ripple through my body. Flames. They were licking up and down my body, slowing entering each vein. The pain of the broken ribs had become second to the burning. I could hear my strangled scream of pain before I lost consciousness, my mind going black.


	6. The Future

6. The Future

* * *

When the blackness had consumed me, it was like I was standing in a cave. No light, not even when I put my hand in front of my face. The pain had faded until it was nothing at all. Was this what it meant to become a vampire? My life would forever be this velvety blackness?

A flash of light flitted across my face. There was an object…or substance, a brightness that seemed to be reflecting the intense light that was now distorting my vision. Several colorful pigments flowed across my vision.

My brain was having problems processing reason. My perception was off; like my intellect or understanding was being distinguished from the faculties of feeling...my own free will was quickly being captured by this new sensation.

The prophetic vision seemed to be increasing exponentially. The act of power or sensing things to come were becoming more vivid. Suddenly, I was full with this mystical experience of knowing the future. The whole future, for years to come. Clear, crystal clear…clear as glass, clear as the wind that I could feel softly blowing across my face.

Events that are to happen in time to come…the possibilities of the future; peoples successes, failures, advancements. I could see it all, rapidly, immensely. My brain was on overdrive.

This instinctive foresight, my perception by intuition was now filing into my mind so quickly sometimes it would only be a glimpse, other times it would be whole days playing out before my eyes.

The blackness that ultimately consumed me only seconds ago was now gone. A bright illumination like the sun or an electric light bulb…a beacon, was lighting my mind with radiance. Shifting pictures were flashing so quickly I was becoming dizzy. My brain felt like it was carrying an excess amount of information, driving my mind to work harder than ever to keep it up. My brain was constantly in an intense state of activity and productivity.

A boy. A beautiful, glorious, wonderfully joyous boy. My life, my love. My foresight focused on him above all others. His face flashed across my mind more than the others. Each moment my body ached with the desire to hold him, to love him…for him to be mine.

Another flash.

There was fear and hope in the future that continued to wade over my mind. I saw the advancements of the times, the wars, the deaths, the love…and the hate. I could see buildings towering, automobiles in funny shapes flying down large paved roads, storms that will cause great devastation, and I could even see so far into the future that the continents had moved positions.

The assault of knowledge, the acquaintance of facts…truths were beginning to send my mind into a state of excitement and agitation. Each vision was overwhelming. I tried to overcome it, to master or subdue the foresight but the excessive feelings, answers, the future were slowly gaining mastery over all my bodily powers and mental faculties.

In a matter of minutes I learned centuries of knowledge. The future continually showing itself to me. There were visions…foresight…that were more intriguing than others. Sometimes things showed themselves in greater detail.

I saw it all. My whole life flashed in front of my eyes. My love, my family…even my death.

Again, there was the blonde boy. He was walking towards me, his lips twitching up into a brilliant smile and his arms wrapping happily around my small frame. The image was full of joy and love and nothing but pure happiness. Feelings I had never felt before were slowly making the blinding light burn brighter.

New figures were now encompassing me.

A blonde man, glorious yet earthly…a bronzed hair boy, young and intriguing – a family of two.

A family of two becoming a family of three.

A family of three becoming a family of four…of five.

A family of five becoming a family of seven.

A family, _my_ family becoming eight. A beautiful brunette. Her long dark hair and her beautiful face. She would be my friend, my best friend.

Of all the visions I had witnessed since I was a little girl, these were the greatest of any fortune I could ever think to own.

As quickly as this joy filled me, agony rippled through my heart as the worst vision yet played through my mind. Daniel being killed by James, Victoria helping to burn the pieces. My heart ached, the pain scorched. Why him? A thought I didn't want to see, the image was more vivid, more disturbing than all the rest, yet shone brightly in the new illumination.

I watched slowly as he crouched over my body. My eyes were closed, my chest still moving…so I _was_ alive. He was…protecting me, like he always tried. James' voice was furious, angry words slipping through his teeth as Victoria hissed in the background. At the sight of my body, he grew irate and charged after Daniel. He tried to fight, but between the two of them there was no chance. I had predicted this from the beginning. This divination above all others I pushed from my mind forcibly, trying my best to remove the stain of my despair. I refused to think about this, to know that I killed the one and only person who loved me.

Deep down, somewhere buried beneath all the grief I was feeling, I knew that someday I would be loved even more greatly than Daniel loved me and I would love in return. The prospect helped to ease my mind, though I wished this vision, of all the visions, were false.

More flashes.

The deluge of facts and information didn't slacken, if anything, it speed up, showing me more images, new revelations, as the body of truths accumulated in the course of time.

A great depression. Hunger, sadness…jobless.

A war…a world war, and another war. Death and destruction seemed to consume the world. Religion slowly bringing death to most.

Several Presidents. Some great, some marred by rumors and hideous truths.

Plagues, illnesses, epidemic diseases that cause high mortality. Wide spread afflictions.

Impressive inventions. New Technology. Cars, computers… Space shuttles?

Medical practices improve; no more torture, no more shock treatment. Pills to treat the insane. Miraculous surgeries, intense treatments for the sick.

Planes… large aircrafts that hold hundreds of people.

Nuclear weapons. Nuclear wars.

Before my eyes I saw grand things, I saw devastations, deaths, births, forests cut down, forests re-grown…Some type of contraption that showed…video?

Every second the onslaught of new information was expanding my brain to its limits. It seemed like seconds had passed, or maybe it was hours…days?

How much more could my brain take? The expansion for the new information wasn't enough. The longer the visions plagued me, the more my head ached until there was suddenly nothing.

The blackness had returned, my brain had reached its capacity.

My eyes fluttered open.

The sun shone brightly through the canopy of trees. I sat up so quickly I startled myself.

"Oh!" my voice sang out.

My fingers instantly found my lips, wondering where the wonderful sound had come from. Something shimmered and caught my eye. I turned quickly, trying to find the culprit of the rainbows that were dancing around. Looking down, I saw that my skin was radiating colors, glittering in the golden glow of the sun.

I gasped.

What was I doing here? How did I get here?

I searched, trying to expand my mind for some sort of knowledge but all I could remember was Alice. That was my name. It seemed the basic knowledge was there, but with all my effort I couldn't figure out what I was doing here.

I sighed and at my intake of breath a fiery ache burned the back of my throat. As soon as I thought it, my hand was already at my neck. My movements were so fluid they happened almost before I actually thought it.

Shock flooded me and I rose from the ground so quickly that several birds flew out of the tree next to me, startled. No pulse. My hand fluttered to my chest, to my other wrist. No heart beat.

What does this mean?

After taking in another deep breath I could feel the dryness of my throat. I was so thirsty. In the distance I could hear a stream of water, but it was unappetizing…unappealing to me. Next to the water was something that smelled more delicious…more enticing.

Automatically I licked my lips. Crouching, I giggled. What was I doing? It seemed natural…right, but it was so odd. My giggle was like bells chiming. Light, airy…beautiful. Once again my fingers met my lips. Could I possibly be the one making that delightful noise?

Another breath.

The delightful scent made me thirstier. Again, I crouched. Instantly, I was running through the trees. I skidded to a halt. Looking back and forth, between where I was and where I had been; my mind began to race ahead. But I was just there…and now I'm here. Hey, I am fast!

Turning, I took off, winding my way through the many trees. They flew by me so quickly that sometimes it was just a blurry streak that I saw from my peripheral vision. I was following my nose now, the delicious fragrance not far from me.

Without thinking or understanding my thoughts I bounded into a thicker area of trees where a large spring was flowing rapidly. There was a man sitting on the bank, fishing. He wasn't sitting on the bank for long, for my fingers wrapped around his arms and brought him to my mouth, his fishing pole now swimming with the fishes. My teeth met his throat…his juicy neck. I could hear his skin tearing under my bite and a shiver of pleasure rippled down me as I found a vein. The man groaned in pain but I was moaning in pleasure. The taste on my tongue was spectacular, wonderful, the most glorious tasting thing ever. The blood was warm, wet and easing the dry thirsty ache in my throat. It felt right; good… the sensations that were pulsing through me made my head spin wildly.

When there was no more blood left in the shell of a man I dropped him. He splashed into the water and I dropped to the forest floor, lying comfortably on my back, though standing was just as comfortable. I felt full as the ache had finally subsided, my body still full of the intense, unrestrained excitement that his blood sent through my quavering body. Just thinking about it made me tremble in satisfaction.

My body was radiating brute strength. I raised my hands in front of me, turning them around and around, wondering how something so small, so delicate looking could hold a grown man off the ground so easily.

Deep down, I knew killing the man was wrong, unjust, but he tasted so wonderful that the thoughts entered my mind as quickly as they left.

As I lay there, dismal, I continued to search within my mind to try and find out who I am…what I am.

Drinks blood. Well, that one should be obvious. I guess I'm a…vampire. I brought my fingers to my arm and pinched. Nothing. Not a dream, or nightmare apparently.

As soon as I thought it I was standing. What was going on with me?

Alice…I pondered. My finger tapped over and over on my temple. It was like an open abyss, no memories, nothing but a blank surface ahead of me.

Then I saw it. Something so distinct whipped across my mind. I don't know how I knew it, but I did. It was going to rain in exactly three minutes. I waited, lightly tapping my foot impatiently against a tree.

I could hear it before I saw it and before I felt it. It sounded like a swirling nose, like many little droplets were whizzing through the air. Then, I heard light clunking noises on the leaves above me before small little droplets of rain splattered across my face.

My mind was in a tumult of queries that I didn't have the answers for. It kept racing ahead, pushing my brain to the limits. Still…nothing.

And, as if things couldn't get more confusing, another startling flash of insight overtook me. A tall, lean…very pale boy with blonde hair was walking through the streets of a town. As if predicting the future wasn't enough, I was now seeing people. Wonderful people…glorious people. Each second I dove deeper into this…vision…or premonition. Whatever it was, I tried to find out what it was about this boy that had me so intrigued. He seemed to be wondering aimlessly, like his life had no purpose. Where he was at? I didn't know.

It swirled away and I made sure to store this into my memory…etch it into my brain. The man, beautiful and glorious, was important. He was special somehow. Not understanding why I knew this, a new sensation rocked through my body.

_Love.

* * *

_


	7. Lost

7. Lost

* * *

Wondering aimlessly through the woods, I came upon an old mattress that someone had thrown out. Thinking that I just needed a good rest to remember my life, I laid down on it and curled my arms around my knees. Closing my eyes I wished for sleep to engulf me, to take me under, to help me understand how I came to be here.

An hour passed and sleep never came. I was comfortable, and I wasn't cold…still, sleep evaded me. My mind seemed like a vast ocean of knowledge, yet I couldn't access the information. A large wall blocked my mind from my past. What was it that could possibly be stopping me from remembering who I was? Was I a good person? Was I bad? Or…was I ever even a person to begin with?

Again, I tried to feel for a pulse, but there was nothing. When I first awoke to this life, I didn't worry nor fright at my empty memory. Now that I lie here, the minutes ticking away, sleep constantly escaping me, panic was slowly rising up my throat, spreading through my chest. My stomach began to fill with some sort of acid.

I was alone. My memory of this afternoon, of taking the life of that innocent man, started to weigh heavily on my conscious. Was this my new life now? Could I ever be around humans if all I wanted to do was drink their blood? And how did I know that it was going to rain?

Another hour passed as my mind was spinning several directions. The sun was setting over the sky and still, sleep wouldn't come. Looking at the ferns on the ground I could tell that it was extremely cold, small ice crystals were forming on the leaves yet I felt no cold. It wasn't just panic that was racing through my veins now; there was terror, absolute, total terror.

Realizing sleep was out of the question I jumped off the old musky mattress and started to pace back and forth, tapping my chin lightly as I tried to figure this out. It's like putting a puzzle together and missing three pieces from the middle that make the picture complete. No, this was worse; it was like having only the edge pieces of a puzzle, the middle blank, hollow and incomplete.

As if things couldn't get worse all of a sudden I was standing in a different kind of forest, two male's were running – as fast as I can run – and jumped over a river and the two of them ravaged seven deer as they sucked them of their life. They were sucking the blood from the animals. When I tried to walk closer to them to ask who they were I ran right into a tree which shuddered and collapsed, the noise reverberating off of the plants. I shook my head and I was back where I was.

"What was that?" I mumbled.

Again, my voice sang out into the air, lovely and beautiful. It caught me off guard and I actually jumped at the sound.

Thinking about what I just saw, I honestly didn't know how I felt about it. Am I losing my mind? First, I wake up and don't know who I am, my voice is something so magical I'm not sure if it is real and then I bite into a man's neck to drink him dry of life. On top of everything else, I keep seeing things that aren't there.

Throughout the night flashes would constantly burst through my mind's eye. I must be going crazy…I am going crazy. A vampire? Seriously? No, it can't be true. I'm crazy, that's all. Or maybe this is just a sick nightmare. Once again, I tried to pinch myself. Nothing.

I slumped to the ground as I felt tears welling up inside my eyes. Sobbing, the tears never came. No matter how many shaking sobs rocked through my body, not a single tear escaped my eyes. Frustrated at the lack of release I held my eyes open, without blinking, willing them to water up. Two hours later my eyes didn't even sting. My sobs redoubled.

In the midst of my panic, my questions, my ever growing horror of what I am, what I…did, my mind began to grow and expand. There was so much room. The extra space was weird, I could concentrate on many things at once, and slowly, I was starting to put the pieces together.

One, I drank blood. Two, I can move insanely fast. Three, I'm super strong…I knocked a tree down for goodness sake! Four, I keep seeing images. Contemplating on the fourth item on my list, I remembered my knowledge of the rain. Could these images, perhaps, be the future? This was inconclusive because the only thing I would have predicted was the rain…once. What about the blonde boy who I love deeply, yet don't know who he is…or the two men running through the forest diving upon deer and taking their lives?

Maybe it was a sign. Could it be possible to feed upon animals instead of humans? Honestly, the thought never occurred to me. After the warmth of the man's blood rushed through my body I was sure there would never be a sensation like that to quench my ever growing thirst. Thirst…. The need to feed was growing at an intense rate. Then again, my curiosity was burning just as badly.

Before I was able to even sniff out an animal, a white fog obscured my senses. There were forms – blobs of people…figures. Before the images could form coherently, a semi transparent cloud erupted over the now sharpening blobs making them nothing more than shadows.

During this divination I found myself wondering through the dense trees. When the images washed away, I nearly stumbled over a tree that was downed. For some reason this tree being down in the forest was interesting – it held something important. My face screwed up in concentration as I tried to regain even an ounce of what I had forgotten. No matter how hard I tried to bring on the memories, there was still nothing but an astronomical abyss of nothingness. I shook my empty head, wishing I could escape this oblivion.

I walked around the tree, which was slowly dying, the leaves withering, but still green. Anyone else would not find this of much or great significant or consequence, but, to me, there was a considerable interest. Something caught my eye, a hollow place in the very solid ground. The tree branches were protruding into this very circular opening. I had to admit, my curiosity was piqued.

Leaning over, I looked into the blackness. There was nothing but dirt and roots. Without thinking, I dropped down into the hole. It was a low, narrow and earthy passageway. There it was, burning again, my intense curiosity. I began walking through the opening as it twisted and turned until the passage began to rise. Walking up a few steps I ran into the end of it. It was a…door? There was no sound on the other side, it was completely quiet. Pushing against it, my eyes peered over the edge through the small opening I made.

It was a room, furnished with a bed and a set of drawers. There was no one around, just the sounds of the wind against the trees. Pressing upon the door it opened with ease and I stepped into what seemed to be a small cabin. This place felt warm and comfortable, though the weather seems to have no affect on me what so ever. Sitting on my bed, I let the horrible truth sink into me like a stone. In my motionless silence I let my mind wonder aimlessly to the solid and impenetrable wall that my mind has placed as an obstacle. An obstacle I can't seem to get past. I shook my head hopelessly.

The sight of the glorious blonde boy I saw earlier was now in front of me, like I could reach out and touch him. My heart grew, expanded tremendously at the sight of him. Before my mind could turn into the happy abyss I craved, I saw something that broke my heart in half.

This boy…Jasper, was his name, was struggling. I could see it in his face, how he was in agony, his face showing deep resentment. His black eyes glittered while rain was driving down from the sky in sheets. He was in the shadows of a building as he stalked a blonde girl. The dim black outline of the woman showed her beautiful curves as she waved goodbye to her friends.

His time to strike was now, but I saw how he was struggling, his mind completely unmade. Why didn't he want to kill her? Was there something wrong with her blood? Was his conscious weighing as heavily on him as mine did after the death of the fisherman? The solid image soon became permeable and then shimmered away. I laid my head back, wondering who exactly this man was, and why I was so incredibly in love with him.

One day…I'll figure out what is really up with my mind. But maybe, just maybe, I am crazy and am really locked in an asylum, oblivious. If that is so, it's not so bad. I just wish that I wasn't lost anymore, but at the same time I fear to reach any civilization, knowing that _their_ scent will be pulsing through the air.

Tomorrow, once I try my hand at sleeping, I will hunt some deer, like the men that invaded my mind. _Tomorrow_… I sighed. I only wish I knew what the future held. I sighed again before laying back on the bed, closing my eyes once more.

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_**Author's Note:**__ I am so very sorry it has taken me this long to update. I was without internet due to some peoples idiocy and last week I was working from morning til morning. I will have more time coming up and will be back to updating on a regular basis. Once again, sorry._

_Please review! Your thoughts on my story are important to me, I read them all. _


	8. Death

8. Death

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I was staring unseeing out the window. There was an odd tactility in the air as I got the impression that someone was watching me. Like someone was seeing me from afar. The sensation didn't leave me as the anxiousness flooded into my body through my finger tips. The two others in the room were oblivious to how the manipulation of moods also meant that I could literally taste the atmosphere around me.

A hand waved in front of my face. "Jasper? Hello?" There was a slight strain in his tone.

My eyes met Peter's. "It's been three weeks." He looked sideways at Charlotte who nodded once. "We are worried about you. Isn't it time for you to hunt again?"

I blinked once, though there was no relief in the action, it was one that would let them know I heard them. The melancholy in the room deepened, but it wasn't from the two sitting across from me, it was from my own feelings.

He was right, though. I did need to hunt. The last time I was out hunting I ran into a man in an alley way. My thirst had gone without quenching for so long I didn't hesitate as I ran towards him to drink of the warm liquid pounding out of his neck.

It was getting worse. The tenor of my prey's state of mind during my attacks was wearing down on me. It was hard for me to explain this to a vampire. I am probably the only vampire in the world who constantly experiences death without the relief of the end.

When stalking my prey, the first sensation they receive is one of anxiety as they constantly look to see who is stalking them, yet meeting no one. The second comprehension is that they are in trouble, in serious life altering danger. Once my hand is around their neck, sniffing up their neck enjoying the aroma before tasting the heat, their emotions usually explode into so many different directions that I barely have the opportunity to enjoy the luscious fragrance emitting off of them.

Over all, it is harder to feed on a woman. The emotions of a female in the compromising position I place all my victims in has them mentally screaming their worst fears through their mood. It was hard not to do, but holding my victims close to my body, letting them warm every inch of me brought some sort of odd satisfaction to me. At the same time, it was almost impossible not to revel in their heady scent. My nose always automatically drew a line up the neck of my meal.

Women usually screamed in protest, because to them I was about to rape them. Silly, honestly. Even if there was a human on this earth that was appealing enough to me for me to lose my self control with I'd probably kill them during the act. Something like that would be impossible for my kind. There have been rumors, but only that.

Women…I stared out the window again, my thoughts still on my prey. The venom automatically pooled in my mouth. I swallowed it back as I thought about the worst victim yet.

She was roughly three feet tall, her long tangles of curls bouncing as she jumped down the front steps of her father's house. She had a teddy bear in one hand and a small backpack on her back. It was night time and the moon accented her skin, her veins easily seen through her translucent skin. She looked back at the house, a tear strolling down her face. Tears were a complicated thing to me. Of course, they didn't smell nearly as good as blood, but the salty smell mixed in with their aroma was hard to resist, too.

Her state of mind was roughly between hate and revulsion. To me, it looked as though she was running away, and perhaps she was. She didn't get very far. I stalked her for a while, my uncontrollable thirst growing. It was hard to think about those days when staying away from a human was nearly impossible. The newborn year, as Maria once called it, is the hardest to get by, yet the strongest you'll ever be.

The year had almost come to an end, so my innate longing for the vital principle was slowly becoming something I could manage. Following behind my prey was odd for me to do, at that young period in my life. She had stumbled several times through the street, having trouble seeing. I had no problems looking straight through the darkness. Her demeanor was straight forward, full of her anger.

She was only a child of roughly seven. This is why I was stalking her instead of feeding upon her. She grappled around in her bag on the side of the cobble stone road. In the darkness she was unaware of what she was touching in front of her and had ultimately cut her finer, sliced it from the tip to her palm.

The wind shifted my direction and immediately I was upon the small child, holding her against the nearest brick wall. It was impossible to stop myself, yet her emotions lashed out at me harder than any other. Automatically my nose sniffed up her neck, her hand in my own so I could taste the blood. I bit down into her palm, the warm life spilling into my cold dry throat. The pain was radiating out of her, our contact concentrating the feelings.

She didn't scream, she only bit her bottom lip in agony and let me take her life. As I drained the blood from her body she came limp in my hands. Her heart was pounding slower as each second I delighted in the taste. As her heart slowed, the feelings of dying swept over her and I could feel them too. There I was, dying just like she was. As death came closer to her, it did for me, too. Every second, every millisecond, her weight was beginning to lessen under my grip as I drained her.

Then she was dead, though right before she died I could feel it coming on…death. And as her body lost its soul, I too died. I dropped her white, limp body. The thud of my prey against the stone street had me cowering away in shame. She was just a child and I had killed her. Each moment of her death I felt along with her. Her youth was no more; she was nothing more than a dead body.

The hand on my shoulder made me flinch. I was so lost in my memories I had forgotten I was with Peter and Charlotte.

"Jasper? We'd like to take you hunting. Please, come with us." Peter said softly.

So calm…so casual about the whole thing. Did they not understand the terror that we possessed? I guess not, considering they hunted more than necessary. Their life did intrigue me, though. No wars, no battles. There was no need to worry about walking down the street by yourself. Here in the north there were no armies or covens responsible for massacres.

"Jasper?" Peter asked again. The feelings of anxiety were growing along with annoyance.

"Let's go." I agreed.

The city we were near was not large, so we stuck to the woods. Peter and Charlotte left me to find my next victim alone. It was easier to hunt when you didn't feel like you needed to protect your back.

There were many trails through the woods, most of them covered in the scent of deer. The smell was not very appealing, though I could hear their heart beats not far from where I was. The night was cold. Frost had covered most of the leaves and the ground was hardening as the night progressed. It was hard to imagine any human being out in this weather, so I wondered dangerously close to the cities boarder.

And then the fragrance hit me. Her scent was more delicious than any I'd had the pleasure of breathing in lately. I didn't know if it was because it had been so long since I had hunted or if it was because it was a female. They did always seem to radiate a sweetness beyond belief. Her mood was tranquil as she leaned against a tree, book in hand as a roaring fire lighted the pages.

I stalked her in the night, though she remained oblivious to me. If only I could feed without my prey knowing they were going to die before hand. I wasn't sure if I could handle the semblance of another victim. I imagined a veil falling between me and her, one that could hide me from her view as I took her life.

As I approached the tasty female the peculiar sensation of being watched occurred again. It was weird to think of someone shadowing me for a change. But this wasn't like someone was pursuing me, just like someone was witnessing my brutal act, or my soon to be brutal act. Why someone would want to observe my maliciousness was beyond me. The feeling didn't go away as I stalked forward.

Her shadow casted sideways as the flames licked up the wood. She brought her hand to her neck, as if she were covering it so I couldn't run my nose up it to gather her heady scent in my lungs. It wasn't fair. I was getting frustrated. I wanted to move forward, but I knew it wouldn't be as satisfying to me as it would be for Peter or Charlotte. She turned the page to her book and then her fingers intertwined with her hair as she ran her hand through the many tangles.

And that was it, the moment of relief. My pounce was fluid as she fell flat on her back against the frozen bracken of the forest floor. It was too easy to just pin her arms down beside her as I straddled her waist. Her heart drummed madly at my appearance. The contact only doubled the strength of my ability.

The strongest of all her emotions was surprise. Bending down over her, I pulled her palm to my nose and the tip brushed down to her arm to her neck and up to her hair. Her heart continued to beat out wild palpitations of fear and alarm. She shuddered when my lips pressed against her neck, my teeth ripping through her skin like biting into butter.

Time seemed to stand still around us as her body began to undergo the complete and permanent cessation of all her vital functions. I grabbed on to her violently, the fatality of this moment burned in the depths of my stomach. The life slipping away from under my hands made me feel like I was slipping away too, to a dark place. The desire didn't fade through the feeling.

Her breath caught in her throat, her last manifest before her death. I was like the agent of death personified, the extinction of her life flowed out of her and into my body. This, I thought warily, was why I didn't hunt for three weeks.

She died…I died.

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_**Author's Note:**__ So, I haven't updated in so long because I wrote chapter 8 several different times, but nothing seemed good enough to post. Then, I got this brilliant idea to write a chapter in Jasper's point of view. I hope I didn't disappoint, though there might be more chapters in his perspective, to help alleviate some of the space between Alice and Jaspers meeting. I might even do a chapter or two in Edwards or Carlisle's point of view. I'll just have to wait and see what idea's roll through my curious head.

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**Please Review!

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**Disclaimer:** All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Stephenie Meyer. Lolafalana is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.

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	9. Journey to Jasper

9. Journey to Jasper

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During the few months of my new existence I had learned many things about myself.

One, I never slept. After several days of trying to fall into the bliss that is sleep, I realized it was never going to happen. It was very odd to have a bed, yet never sleep in it. But, just like it was an old habit I didn't remember, I would cuddle up on the bed from time to time to try and relax myself in some sort of suspended animation.

Two, I was pretty sure I was psychic. This was one of the weirdest sensations I felt these days. As alone as I was, and as quiet as things seemed to be around me and the cabin I still stayed in, I was constantly bombarded with images from several creatures like me. My favorite to watch was Jasper.

Jasper had golden blonde hair and a sturdy figure. Usually his eyes were deep pools of thirst and frustration. This I could understand because I too had issues with, well, to put it bluntly, eating humans. Most of the time I just imagined myself in his embrace. Sometimes I thought about it so much that something inside me ached with the prospect.

After my most recent vision, I decided I was going to find Jasper. I was considerably worried about leaving the comfort of my acquired cabin, but it was time for me to help this young man. Because, on top of everything else I had learned about myself, I could and do hunt animals – not people. He seemed too lost, and all I wanted to do was show him a life with me and the opportunity to hunt with me.

Hunting. It was another one of those things I learned about myself. Every time I was about to explode with thirst suddenly there was a vision showing me how I could quench it. After giving my head a few shakes and some slaps across the face, I finally decided my mind was telling me there was another way.

Actually, the first time trying to catch an animal would have been comical to any witnesses. I guess it was because I decided to skip the less tempting deer and go for the big prey. I first happened upon a bear. Okay, it wasn't just a bear, it was bears. As in three. They were three times my height and had brown fur that moved fluidly with each step they took. It was not as easy to see where to bite on one of these creatures. In fact, I was more worried about swallowing their fur, which absolutely disgusted me. To top it off, my visions continued to bombard me with different scenarios. And during my 'vision time' one had come up to me to find out if I was a tasty treat. I must not have been agreeable to him because he was about to turn away when my vision finally came back to me. One moment there wasn't a bear in front of me, and the next thing I see is the large furry creature only inches from my face. At that moment, I still didn't know what my strength was, or that I could bring down full sized bears so my first reaction was to scream.

The bear screamed back, his growl was much more menacing than my soprano chime. I clamped my hand over my mouth to stop the sound and then there were two more bears surrounding me. All I remember thinking was, _this isn't good_. Next thing I knew something was tickling me from behind and then the hot air of the summer was more pronounced on my back. When I whirled around to see what had caused the strange sensation it was the bears claw which was coming at me again. I ducked and realized that my skin was practically impenetrable against these large beasts.

I punched one of the bears and he fell down onto the rocks with a large crash while I actually tripped – literally tripped – the other bear. It was hard not to laugh at the sight of this large beast being taken down by someone barely over five feet tall. My giggle seemed to only enrage the last one standing and my thirst finally took over and the creature's warm blood was rushing down my throat in an intoxicating way because it had been several weeks since I had fed upon that fisherman.

Coming back to the present, I was rummaging through the cabin. During my many months stay here I had tried to make myself a home. Daily I would find wild flowers to put in the vases and cleaning became another daily regiment. The only thing disagreeable to me was the lack of style and flare, not including my own ragged clothes. They were so torn and dirty from my many hunting trips and my nightly strolls through the woods that I wasn't certain how I was going to convince Jasper that my life style was better.

There was one thing that my vision did show me that I could use to my advantage. The thing was, I didn't know if I wanted to wait that long. After several trips to the city during the evenings when humans were asleep in their beds, I had come to acquire several news papers and a calendar. It was May 1921. The thing I learned through my trips was that people made money in something called the stock market. It seemed promising, besides the crash of it that will happen in 1929. After reading about trading, selling and buying of these stocks, I decided this was my opportunity to gain money for my journey to find Jasper.

Today would be the first day I interact with humans. During the evening I had hunted several deer and even a fox. My eyes were golden and my thirst abated for now. I knew that my clothes and the fact I'm a girl wasn't going to get me very far in this business, so today I was going to find my 'go to' guy. From my most recent vision this was going to be a lot more fun than anything I have done to date.

Excitement rolled off of me in huge waves as I flitted around the cabin. Flowers were in the vases, the place was sparkly and clean, my hair was impossible, and my clothes…well, they covered me up. Let's just not think about the clothes for now. Now all that was left was locking the place up before I left.

It took me almost a whole day, but I ran as fast as I could towards the north. Mississippi just didn't have the access to the stock market like New York City did. And this worried me even more. It wasn't like a small town of people; this was going to be a huge city with _millions_ of people.

The city was bustling when I finally emerged on the edge of town. I could hear some carts moving with horses padding their way through the streets along with horns blaring and engines roaring to life as people drove their new fancy cars through the streets of New York City. Deciding I didn't want to venture out towards town yet, the out skirts seemed to be the place for me.

First, I needed money. The quickest way to acquire it was to steal. Though I felt bad about it, I knew that I would pay them back with interest once I earned enough money. Breaking into house after house and finding their money was easy once you added my psychic ability. I found that if I looked to the future I could see where I found the money and make my search only last seconds, instead of hours.

Second, it was time to find my 'go to' guy. This was easier than I realized. Only a few blocks away from where I was, was a man who was weeping at losing his job. Perfect, I thought as I ran towards his house. He was alone, and where his wife and children where, I had no idea.

I knocked with two successive rapts on the door. The door slowly opened to show a tall man, roughly thirty with long brown hair and a need to shave. As if my breath was knocked out of me his scent hit my nose and about toppled me backwards. It was…delicious. Mouthwatering. The most delectable thing I had ever had the pleasure of breathing in. The man could see the hunger in my eyes and backed away.

I grabbed the door frame to balance myself, to try and swallow any thirst that wanted me to just suck his blood, literally. It cracked under my pressure and the man stumbled backwards and began to fall. It was almost as if sense was knocked into me. I flung the door open and caught him with ease before his head hit the small table beside the door.

"How…how…how did you – how did you do that?" the man stuttered.

His warmth was flooding into me and I knew I had to let go before my thirst came back to me. I let go and backed away quickly. Deciding to be polite now, instead of breaking the man's house further I reached out my hand.

"Hi. I'm Alice – " I paused trying to grapple for a last name. " – Cullen." I finished, deciding that the two men I constantly saw in my visions wouldn't mind me using their last name.

"Oh, hi. I'm Jebadiah Olsen," he stammered. "What can I do for you?" He gulped as he took in my appearance. "Now, I don't have any money. So if you're here to beg I can't help you. I have no job and a family to feed."

I just smiled at him. "Oh no, Mister Olsen. I'm here to help you."

His mouth slightly opened. "Uh," he shut his mouth with a snap.

It was hard not to giggle at his lack of words. Instead, I handed him a large wad of cash.

"What's this for?" he stammered.

"You now have a job. I will pay you far more than your other job and all you have to do is what I ask of you," I explained vaguely.

He didn't seem to mind the lack of information after counting up the bills I had shoved in his palm.

"Okay?" he asked curiously.

"First, I need clothes for obvious reasons. Please go out and find me the most _fashionable_ thing out there," emphases on the word fashionable. "I am not comfortable in crowds, especially humans." His face made several different expressions as he grasped the concept of me being some sort of supernatural being. He was only lucky it wasn't sunny today. I could only imagine the rainbows dancing off my body. Surely, that would frighten him.

"Oh course, my lady. I'm sorry. I mean Misses Cullen," he stammered. Did all humans have a hard time talking, or was it just this man?

"And I'm going to need a house," I continued as if there was no pause.

He gaped at me.

"Now, don't worry," I said soothingly. "I will find myself a house. All I need you to do is buy it for me with my money. Remember, if you help me – and don't tell anyone about our arrangement – you will be wealthy and be able to support your family." I explained happily.

An extremely cheesy grinned appear across his face. "Yes'um." He nodded.

"Okay, please hurry back while I acquire more money for my house. Then, we need to talk stocks," I waved him away.

He didn't move for several minutes as he tried to understand how he got so lucky…or maybe he was just worried I was a curse that fell upon his doorstep. Perhaps I was the devil in disguise. Regardless of what he was thinking, he ran off towards the bustling city. Humans seemed to be incredibly…interesting, I decided.

And off I went to find me a house to settle into for eight years. Of course, I'd sell my house before the stock market crashes. Looks like the future for the humans isn't so bright after all…

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**Author's Note:** _If you are wondering what I am up to, please check out my profile. There I will tell what my current project is for fan fiction. Thank you to all of my loyal followers. I have been out of town for more than a week so that is why there was a delay. Now things seem to be back on track._

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**Please Review!**

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**Disclaimer:** All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Stephenie Meyer. Lolafalana is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.

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	10. Jump

10. Jump

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Esme

Today was the most desolate day of my life. My baby was cradled in my arms, blue lipped and cold. The tears that were cascading down my face dripped from my chin to splatter and sprinkle the once animated child. He was gone, lifeless, yet I clung to him as if this would bring him back to life. Even when people came to pry the dead child from my arms I fought.

"Esme," whispered a woman's voice. "He's gone. God is taking care of him now." But it was because of this that made me question the very thought of there being a God. Why would He take away such an innocent being? Or someone so pure and wonderful, someone who never had the chance to live, to dance or to love?

As they took the body from the house, all became silent. I was alone. In those moments I contemplated God. If that was where my child was now, that is where I wanted to be. Heaven. It was easy to figure out what I needed to do now. Something unimaginable, but it was something I looked forward to. Something I began praying for: my own death.

Getting to my feet, I walked towards the front door. As the door flung open, I stepped outside to hear the noises of the area around me which were bursting with laughter, the clatter of businesses and the hum of life. Everyone was going on with their lives as if one was not lost; as if this death was not monumental compared to those continuing to live.

Instead of going back inside, to conceal myself from the world, I continued through the door frame, and then down the street. My feet were bare and being cut into little pieces, but that pain was negligible compared to the ripping in my heart. The street turned a corner, yet I continued to go straight through the woods ahead of me.

There was no trail to follow, no path to release. It was only the middle of the day but the grounds were darkening, like they were preparing for my fate. I was clueless on how I would end this life, but I didn't care anymore. I just wanted to walk. And that's what I did. The sky continued to darken as lightning lanced across the sky. The wind gradually began to pick up in pace as I strode forward, not caring where my bleeding feet would lead me.

My hair whipped around in the air, dancing in the twisty air of the great storm that was approaching. The white dress that fell down to my ankles billowed in the air, dirty and torn from my journey. It was then that I saw a great valley, a view so breathtakingly beautiful that it would be nice to have this be the last thing I see. There it was, the answer. I saw the precipitous cliff looming over this magnificence below me.

The wind was unrelenting. My brown hair continued to frolic around my face as if it had its own mind. My feet moved closer to the edge, slowly bringing myself to my death, to my child, to my love. Round tears began to descend my face as I continued to make each step towards the end. The ribbon that was tying the last of my hair fluttered away as I took another step. The sharp rocks were cutting deeply into my feet but that didn't stop me from taking another step, slowly reaching the outcrop.

The ground was far beneath, a distance acceptable to give me my ultimate demise. A large gust of wind came whistling through the air as my dress flew behind me, my hair swaying. I took another step. My toes finally reached the end of the land as they dangled dangerously over the edge. I took in a deep steadying breath and closed my eyes to send a prayer to my child.

_I'll see you soon. _

I spread my arms out like I were an eagle and took that one last step. The air rushing up around my dress as I tumbled through the air was the most freeing thing I had ever felt. It was only a second or two before the ground came rushing up to my feet. The end, it was here. It was then that I hit the ground, that I became one with the earth, that I left my body and was no longer feeling that pain.

Blackness, that was all there was. No pain, no memories…nothing. And then, as suddenly as the calm hit, so did the pain. My breath was robbed from my right lung as I had the feeling that all of my bones had melted and were dislocated from each other. Everything below my waist was non-existent. There was no ache there, there was just nothing at all. Complete numbness. I couldn't have asked for anything else. When I tried to open my eyes, it was useless. And then it was silent, wherever I was. There was no storm ahead.

I heard a door open and then it closed. There were no steps, no breath, not even the sound of wind against cloth. The only thing I could feel were the cool hands caressing my face, as if soothing a kitten. I wanted to reach out, to sigh, to ask him to continue the job I started. Just kill me. End it all. In my head I was begging for it.

It was in that moment that I thought he must have heard my thoughts because there was a sharp pain on the side of my neck. It was nothing compared to the pain I was already feeling.

I was wrong. Something flashed through my veins so fast I thought they would explode with heat. And that is when I had an out of body experience. It was dark. It was finally the end. Or so I thought. My eyes opened, after what felt like years of torture. Everything was…new.

Alice

Today was going to be a remarkable day. How did I know this? I saw it in the future. The clouds were heavy in the sky and the forests around the house were somehow creeping in, making me feel comfortable in this new city. It was like a large playground in my backyard. The forest, not the city. Well, maybe the city, too. And not just any city, either. New York City! The city with flare. Not only was my closet completely stocked but I had another vision. This time I found a clue. After a year of living in this opulent town, having men work for me in the business world, I had grown quite lonely. Today I was going to try and fix that.

My efforts were futile. Or they would be today. It was easier for me to push my mind out, trying to see the outcome of my future. Today would be somewhat fruitful, adventurous, yet still I will end up alone. It was utterly frustrating to know this in advance, but it made me feel secure all the same. Having these divinations had become so naturally a part of my life now that sometimes I didn't even realize I was doing it. Other times it was just only natural for me to check five minutes ahead for this or that.

There was a knock on the door, which I had anticipated, of course. Without haste I flung the door wide open, a huge grin spreading across my face.

"Mr. Olsen. So good to see you," I said amiably.

"You can just call me Jebadiah, Misses Cullen," he bowed diligently. He'd told me this many times before, I still call him Mr. Olsen more than he'd like.

He followed me back into the house where I walked straight to the bathroom. I leaned over the sink to fix my hair in the mirror.

"What's the news Mr. – Jebadiah? Are things going well for you and your wife?" I queried. Human life did always fascinate me, and Mr. Olsen had proven time and time again to be a great asset and trust worthy, though, I never told him what I was and he never asked. That never stopped me from prying into his life, though. I needed some form of entertainment. Sometimes I felt like I was having to learn all of these human instincts. Maybe I was never human to begin with.

"My family has finally settled into our new house," he blushed and the wave of heat hit me like a ton of bricks being smacked across my face. "T-thanks," he said shyly.

I held my breath and nodded, not wanting him to realize how whenever my eyes roamed over his flushed neck and face all I saw was the big vein throbbing beneath the skin – calling – beckoning me to feed. I over rode this desire, which was gradually becoming more manageable.

"No need to thank me Jebadiah," I said while gripping the granite counters in the bathroom. "You're house was falling down and I found a rat in there once. That is no way for you and your family to live, especially when I pay you enough for you to have your living conditions be more grandiose." The granite began to crack beneath of embrace so I continued pinning a stray hair to my head which then snapped under pressure.

I was so busy trying to fix the tangled mess on the top of my head and trying my best to distract myself from the allure of his scent that I didn't see what he was holding. "My wife," Mr. Olsen held out a plate, "she made you a pie, to show how much she appreciates everything you have done for our family."

Automatically I pulled the dish into my hands, trying my best to keep the grimace off my face. It smelled like baked apples, cinnamon, flour and butter. What an odd combination. "I'm sure it'll taste wonderful," I smiled as genuinely as I could.

He nodded approvingly and then stepped back from me. My reflection showed the hunger in my eyes and I swallowed the venom in my mouth. "Well, Mr. Olsen," I made my voice cheery. "I'm going to be gone for a few days. Please feel free to take a few days off."

He nodded again. "When will you be back, Misses Cullen?"

"In three days. I'll find you when I return," I told him.

After Mr. Olsen left my house I prepared for my journey. It was when I was stuffing as many changes of clothes I could into my suitcase that I was slammed into a vision. This one was more violent and brutal then any I had ever had before.

A woman with beautiful long brown hair was holding her dead child to her chest, screaming, crying out to whoever would be listening. My heart broke for this woman, for her heartache. There was no one there to hold her, to help her along her way and I knew that I felt the same. Someone finally came and took the child and then she was alone again. That was when the vision twisted into something more vicious. There was a storm overhead that made the clouds turn almost black. The wind was slowly picking up as this woman, who I just knew was named Esme, walked towards the edge of a great cliff.

My whole body tensed as I reflexively grabbed whatever was near for support. Her long white dress billowed in the stormy weather; her hair frolicking around her face like a tornado had caught it in its wind. Wet tears rolled down her face as she took each step towards the outcrop. A ribbon in her hair rippled with the wind until it untied and flew away as she took another step. Her feet were bare and were slowly being cut with each step on the rock.

Her toes reached the end of the land and curled over the edge. I screamed for her to stop, to step back. She didn't. She raised her arms if she were preparing to do a nose dive into the deep valley below. She took that one last step. I screamed as she hit the earth and then I was blasted back to my home.

My whole body shook with the vision. There was something important about this, something I hadn't seen yet. I stared at my hands as if they contained an oracle, as if it would lead the way. But it didn't help so I sat there, breathing evenly and trying to understand why I just saw what I saw. This was a horrible day to be blessed with this gift, and to prove my words right I was again knocked over by another divination so powerfully miraculous I almost wondered if it were my imagination.

The tall blonde vampire, Carlisle Cullen, which I see daily sometimes, was working diligently in a hospital. I admired his gift to work around blood. Sometimes I could barely handle being around Mr. Olsen, especially when he flushes, and he does that often. It was then that he heard something in a different direction than the steps he were taking as he swung a complete 180 and suddenly it was like I was inside his body, moving towards the doors that read: morgue.

As the door flung open to the crisply clean room, there she was, Esme. He walked towards her slowly, as if he were listening for something. Her heart, perhaps? His hand lightly ran down her cheek to her neck; where he slowly bent down to bite her.

I was shocked. This was the first time that I saw the gentle vampire bite a human. And, not just any human, one that should be dead. Who I thought was dead! Or maybe she was dead! I tried to shake the vision, to forget what I saw, to prevent the imagine from forming before me. It was too late; it was plainly displayed on my pupils for analysis later. And that is what I would do: study this.

But there was no need because shortly after returning to my body, I was again thrust so deeply into another mind numbing vision that I thought I would never make it out the door to find Jasper.

Esme. A vampire. I gasped in shock. I felt a jolt in my middle and I was back in my room, sprawled across the floor, clothes askew on the floor and bed, and the wood cracked on my bed frame from holding on too tightly.

It was time to get answers. It was time to find Carlisle Cullen. Then there was the question: which one first; Jasper or Carlisle?

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**Author's Note:** I just had to add a little bit about Esme's journey to the cliff. It's not thoroughly detailed, but this is Alice and Jasper's story…she just happens to be a part of it. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you are wondering what story(ies) I am currently working on, check out my profile. I will try to update it often.

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